Rear Ended Again

[fossyant]

I guess I'm either very lucky, amazingly skilled, too slow, or don't cycle enough as I've never been involved in a collision. I can't help feeling - is it just a matter of time until I find myself in the back of an ambulance, or is actually being hit a fairly rare thing to happen?

...

This has made me think a lot actually. I think I'll start a poll.

It's pretty rare, although I work on a more serious 'off' once every 3 years - be that involving a car, or just falling off, as you do, given the time I spend on a bike.

 

[Arch]

A weird one that happened a few weeks ago.

I was approaching a set of traffic lights in Warwick. I heared a frightful rumbling on the road behind me. I looked round and saw an APC ( Armoured Personell Carrier ) approaching. Track laying beast with a plume of diesel exhaust into the air.
Was it a real Squaddie or some rich swine playing army?

I didn't stay in primary. I didn't even move to the gutter. I stopped immediately and pulled my bike up onto the sidewalk well out of the thing's way.

It was HM Armed Forces. They were advertising Warwick carnival and had a 'Help for Heros' banner across the rear end.

What was doubly weird was I was left standing outside the White Hart on Saltisford, the Royal Warwicks' insignia staring me in the face.

I found myself being followed by and APC a couple of years back. I pedalled like heck until I got to a wider bit of road (a matter of a few hundred yards), and they passed me, and I got a thumbs up from the gunner sticking out of the top...

I'm blowed if I'm going to get off my bike just to get out of the way of some squaddie - emergency services yes, but the average APC isn't likely to be hurrying to a war, not in York....

Of course, given that they probably have limited vision, getting out of the way might be wise. But then I don't want to be faffing about dismounting while they bear down on me...

As for rear ending - I'll admit I'm usually stopped to the left of the lane, just in order to get a foot down on the kerb (short legs). Cars rarely pull along side me in that position though, and I make sure I deliberately 'wobble' out in front of the car behind when I set off.

 

[Jezston]

Just remind them that it was the Japanese on bicycles that kicked us out of Singapore in WW2.

I don't know if that's relevant or indeed actually meaningful in any way whatsoever, but it's worth mentioning.

 

[Norm]

Norm, I'm intrigued: do you do this on your motorbike - if not, why not?

No, because, on the motorbike, I don't wait at the back of a queue.

I generally either lane-split or overtake on the right of the queued traffic, because I know that I will not be holding anyone up when the lights change or I get to the front of the queue.

When cycling, pushing to the front of a queue gains me little more than a few seconds and can antagonise those drivers who need to overtake again.

Edited to add These, of course, are the default options, not stuff that I guarantee I do 100% of the time.

 

[Origamist]

No, because, on the motorbike, I don't wait at the back of a queue.

I will either lane-split or overtake on the right of the queued traffic, because I know that I will not be holding anyone up when the lights change or I get to the front of the queue.

When cycling, pushing to the front of a queue gains me little more than a few seconds and can antagonise those drivers who need to overtake again.

I do as you do on your motorbike (either to the front or a few cars before the front of the queue), but I just pull left when I'm through the junction so I don't unnecessarily delay people. I nearly always find it easier to move left out of the traffic flow (i.e. move from the centre of the lane to a metre or so from the road edge) rather than try to merge right into a traffic stream as you pull away, YMMV.

 

[Norm]

Given that all this is written from the comfort of a swivel chair in an air-conditioned office, if you were to "fly-on-the-wall" me and see what I actually do on the road, I don't think our actions would be all that different, Origamist.

As I said in my OP, if I overtake (depending on etc etc) when cycling, then I'll do it on the right rather than the left.

If I wait, then I'll wait very close to the NSR wing of the rear-most car rather than into the gutter, so I am still part of the road traffic rather than someone who might be about to RLJ on the pavement.

 

[JoysOfSight]

Sounds exactly like what I do, except I wait behind the numberplate of the vehicle in front, or perhaps on the offside wing (if I want better visibility and there's no danger of anyone mistaking it for a right-turn).

But then, I only bother to filter past if the cars are holding me up and I don't expect any to "get me back" before the next obstacle.

Otherwise, I find it costs little time to wait in the queue. One of my great pleasures is watching a rider behind me overtake and find their way to the ASL, and then howl past them in the traffic stream a few moments later

 

[Origamist]

Given that all this is written from the comfort of a swivel chair in an air-conditioned office, if you were to "fly-on-the-wall" me and see what I actually do on the road, I don't think our actions would be all that different, Origamist.

As I said in my OP, if I overtake (depending on etc etc) when cycling, then I'll do it on the right rather than the left.

If I wait, then I'll wait very close to the NSR wing of the rear-most car rather than into the gutter, so I am still part of the road traffic rather than someone who might be about to RLJ on the pavement.

I'm sure we're not all that different, Norm (well, I have a window, no air-con).

Watch this (only if you're desperately bored, mind) as even though I said I move left when I'm through a junction, sometimes, I don't (need to)!

[media]

]View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j0bXYeyGzHs[/media]

 

[Norm]

I'm sure we're not all that different, Norm (well, I have a window, no air-con).

Just for the day, we're even closer. The weather is too good to miss, so the air con is off and the windows are open.